It’s back to business this week for Sofa Sharers; after a couple of weeks of unusual editions, including a fantastic interview with Housemarque, the original format is back in action. Which means we’ve got a look back at some of the best split-screen games ever, the Call of Duty franchise. Plus, Andy McDonald recounts his time with Mario Kart, which is probably the best split-screen game ever, then a look around at what local co-op gaming has to offer here and now. Let’s get to it!
MW 2019 is five years old at this point and on previous gen hardware, but it is still the best looking Call of Duty game to date.
MW was an excellent videogame. They messed up Spec Ops big time, but aside from this it was a huge step in the right direction initially. Most notably, at launch it seemed to come from a very cohesive creative vision that was felt across gameplay, to story to art style/visual direction. It was also very notably written by prominent ex-Naughty Dog guys that quit almost immediately before release.
That COMPLETELY dissolved through post-launch content and the full pivot to a "cross-mode" narrative that completely obliterated the cohesion in overall story direction. Warzone then "became" the new face of Call of Duty and the franchise completely removed itself from anything remotely creatively "good". It is a pure money machine, so I kinda get why they're doing it....but I personally completely lost interest.
I would love to see Infinity Ward move off CoD and get to make their own product with full control. They clearly have some massive talent in their ranks but it's perverted by Activision's corporate interests.
Call Of Duty is back with its yearly instalment, but is Modern Warfare 3 breaking new ground, or just a lazy cash grab? The answer may not surprise you in today's review from JDR.
The Mario Kart TAG Heuer Formula 1 Watch, a collaboration between TAG Heuer and Nintendo, is a blend of high-end watchmaking and iconic video game nostalgia.
Cool cool, can I get a plastic little watch that when you push a button you hear a "wahoo"? I can't afford to waste 4k on a watch right now, but maybe later.
